Offbeat One year of Mueller as special counsel, by the numbers

15:27 17 may 2018

15:27 17 may 2018 Source:
cnn.com

Mueller rejects Trump request to answer questions in writing

Special counsel Robert Mueller has denied President Trump's request to answer Russia probe questions in writingFormer New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who is now on President Trump's legal team, told CBS News correspondent Paula Reid Monday afternoon that special counsel Robert Mueller's office has rejected proposals to allow Mr. Trump to answer questions from investigators in writing.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller is assembling an all-star team of veteran prosecutors whose expert backgrounds go beyond counterintelligence. Gingrich sent the numbers to the White House.

McCarthy spoke highly of special counsel Robert Mueller (pictured), himself a former FBI director, calling him “a very patriotic American.” “He’s about 72, so he’s about 14, 15 years older than I am.

Thursday marks one year since special counsel Robert Mueller was appointed to investigate Russian meddling in the 2016 US election. Mueller took over an investigation that was first opened by since-fired FBI Director James Comey in July 2016, during the campaign.

The far-reaching investigation continues -- witnesses are still being interviewed, and trials are scheduled for later this year. As the proceedings have dragged on, the White House has adopted an increasingly hostile tone toward the investigation, which President Donald Trump has repeatedly called a "witch hunt" and a "hoax."

Giuliani: Mueller's team told Trump's lawyers they can't indict a president

Special counsel Robert Mueller's team has informed President Donald Trump's attorneys that they have concluded that they cannot indict a sitting president, according to the President's lawyer. "All they get to do is write a report," Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani told CNN. "They can't indict. At least they acknowledged that to us after some battling, they acknowledged that to us.

Special Counsel investigation (2017–present). Since May 2017, a Special Counsel investigation has been led by the United States Special Counsel , Robert Mueller , a former Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

But in acting as general counsel , Mueller isn’t just an executive branch appointee – he’s also acting as an attorney, which means he’s bound by the special ethics rules which cover the profession.

Here is a breakdown of what we know about one year of the investigation under Mueller, by the numbers.

In one year, Mueller has brought charges against 19 people and three companies, including a former White House adviser, three former Trump campaign aides -- including the campaign chairman at the time -- a prominent Russian oligarch and a dozen Kremlin-backed trolls. In all, these defendants are facing a combined 75 criminal charges, ranging from alleged conspiracy against the United States, bank fraud and tax violations to lying to FBI investigators and identity fraud.

Five defendants have pleaded guilty -- most prominently, former national security adviser Michael Flynn and former Trump campaign aide Rick Gates, who are both cooperating with Mueller. Alex van der Zwaan, a Dutch lawyer who pleaded guilty to lying to the special counsel, is currently serving a 30-day prison sentence.

A federal judge refused on Tuesday to dismiss criminal charges brought by Special Counsel Robert Mueller against President Donald Trump's former campaign manager Paul Manafort, after Manafort claimed that Mueller had exceeded his prosecutorial powers. In a sharp rebuke of those claims, Judge Amy Berman Jackson, of U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, ruled that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein had followed all the Justice Department's rules when he hired Mueller and Mueller's case against Manafort is not overly broad or improper.

It is not just the appointment of a special counsel that is cause for relief but the specific choice of Robert Mueller . As a result, Mueller has deep, working ties with the Republicans and Democrats in Congress, before whom he testified in the course of those 12 years .

4/ For these reasons—and because Trump can't legally fire Mueller —you should assume the Special Counsel will refuse to be fired directly by Trump if Trump attempts to do this. That said, Democrats would only need a small number of Republican allies in the two houses of Congress to protect Mueller .

Before Mueller took over the investigation, at least two former Trump campaign staffers were placed under government surveillance. The FBI and Justice Department got approval from federal judges to wiretap and monitor the communications of Manafort and Carter Page, a foreign policy adviser to the campaign.

Mueller lawyers seek to prevent their ouster with dual filings

Lawyers from special counsel Robert Mueller's team have filed as special assistant U.S. attorneys in their case against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, a move that could make it harder for a federal judge to move the case to a different court. PoliPolitico reported Monday that several attorneys on Mueller's team signed off on court filings as both representatives of Mueller's office, and as special assistant United States attorneys.

James Comey, the former F.B.I. director fired by President Donald Trump last year , has been interviewed by special counsel Robert Mueller as part of his investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 presidential election.

Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein in May appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller as special counsel “to oversee the investigation into ties between President Trump’s campaign and Russian officials,” according to The New York Times.

Earlier this year, Trump's lawyers touted an "unprecedented" level of cooperation with Mueller. They boasted that the White House had handed over 20,000 pages to Mueller and the Trump campaign had produced an additional 1.4 million pages of documents. They also noted that at least 20 White House staffers "voluntarily" gave interviews to Mueller's investigators, including eight people from the White House Counsel's Office.

The President has not yet been interviewed, but negotiations are underway for him to provide testimony. CNN has reported that in at least one meeting, Mueller raised the possibility of a subpoena to compel Trump's testimony. Trump has said he would "love to speak" to Mueller, so long as he is "treated fairly."

When Mueller was appointed, Trump's initial response seemed resolute but calm. "As I have stated many times, a thorough investigation will confirm what we already know — there was no collusion between my campaign and any foreign entity," the President said in a statement.

But early the next morning, Trump used what is now his signature phrase to describe the probe. "This is the single greatest witch hunt of a politician in American history!" he tweeted. He has tweeted about the "witch hunt" 39 times since the Mueller probe began, and has used it more frequently over the past two months.

Mueller has a lot of options besides indicting Trump. Here they are

Rudy Giuliani's assertion to CNN this week that President Donald Trump can't be indicted by the special counsel, and thus can't face a subpoena, banks on a series of internal Justice Department policies. The question to this day is untested in the court system. Yet the step-by-step process Robert Mueller or any special counsel could follow for a President under investigation has several possible outcomes.

Robert Mueller ’s sprawling special - counsel investigation is playing hardball. It has been over a year , and they don’t have it. If they had it, former FBI director Jim Comey would not have thrice told Trump he was not a suspect.

“ Special Counsel Mueller derives his office and powers from the DOJ, as he was appointed, strangely, by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.” The complaint cites a number of leaks of confidential information. Sen.

Congratulations America, we are now into the second year of the greatest Witch Hunt in American History...and there is still No Collusion and No Obstruction. The only Collusion was that done by Democrats who were unable to win an Election despite the spending of far more money!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 17, 2018

Mueller has assembled a team of at least 17 lawyers and "dozens" of FBI agents to help with his investigation. Nine of the lawyers donated to Democratic candidates before 2017, according to federal records. Eight of those lawyers gave only to Democrats, while one has donated to Democrats and Republicans before.

Nearly $7 million was spent by the federal government between May and September 2017 to investigate Russian meddling in the 2016 election, according to the latest publicly available spending figures. Of that total, Mueller's team spent approximately $3.2 million, and another $3.5 million was spent separately by law enforcement personnel working on the investigation who do not report directly to Mueller.

Trump enjoyed 117 days of a Mueller-free presidency before May 17, 2017, when Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein announced the special counsel's appointment. Rosenstein installed Mueller "to ensure a full and thorough investigation of the Russian government's efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election," his order said.

Five months later, in October, Mueller's team announced its first indictments. But the first trial is still two months away, slated for July 10, when Manafort will face federal bank and tax fraud charges in Virginia.

CNN's Katelyn Polantz contributed to this report.

Mueller's office files unredacted memo outlining scope of Russia probe-filing .
<p>Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office notified a federal court in Virginia on Thursday it had filed under seal an unredacted memorandum that is expected to shed light on the scope of his wide-ranging probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.</p>WASHINGTON, May 17 (Reuters) - Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office notified a federal court in Virginia on Thursday it had filed under seal an unredacted memorandum that is expected to shed light on the scope of his wide-ranging probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Special Counsel investigation (2017–present). Since May 2017, a Special Counsel investigation has been led by the United States Special Counsel , Robert Mueller , a former Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Is Robert Mueller Barred by Attorney Ethics Rules From Serving As - www.redstate.com

But in acting as general counsel , Mueller isn’t just an executive branch appointee – he’s also acting as an attorney, which means he’s bound by the special ethics rules which cover the profession.

4 Reasons Why Robert Mueller Is an Ideal Special Counsel - www.thenation.com

It is not just the appointment of a special counsel that is cause for relief but the specific choice of Robert Mueller . As a result, Mueller has deep, working ties with the Republicans and Democrats in Congress, before whom he testified in the course of those 12 years .

Thread by @SethAbramson: "(THREAD) There's now a rumor in " - threadreaderapp.com

4/ For these reasons—and because Trump can't legally fire Mueller —you should assume the Special Counsel will refuse to be fired directly by Trump if Trump attempts to do this. That said, Democrats would only need a small number of Republican allies in the two houses of Congress to protect Mueller .

James Comey was interviewed by special counsel Mueller - www.cnbc.com

James Comey, the former F.B.I. director fired by President Donald Trump last year , has been interviewed by special counsel Robert Mueller as part of his investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 presidential election.

Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein in May appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller as special counsel “to oversee the investigation into ties between President Trump’s campaign and Russian officials,” according to The New York Times.

Robert Mueller Special Counsel Investigation: Manafort Under Pressure - www.nrostatic.com

Robert Mueller ’s sprawling special - counsel investigation is playing hardball. It has been over a year , and they don’t have it. If they had it, former FBI director Jim Comey would not have thrice told Trump he was not a suspect.

New push to oust Mueller as special counsel - www.wnd.com

“ Special Counsel Mueller derives his office and powers from the DOJ, as he was appointed, strangely, by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.” The complaint cites a number of leaks of confidential information. Sen.

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